REQUIEM FOR A DREAM

People know I hated Pi with a vengeance. But when I first saw the trailers for Requiem, I was intrigued, I thought it looked cool. So I went to see it. And now I got the DVD and watched the movie many times. It’s a great movie. Many people don’t like it, because it’s too violent or depressing or gross, which is quite weird for me since those are some of the reasons I love it! When I finish watching a movie, if I feel like taking a shower, I know the movie was good. When I finish watching a movie and feel like either blowing my brains out or taking out a few junkies to put them out of their misery, I know the movie was good. Or, you could help getting someone you love into rehabilitation.

Well, at the very least I know I wasn’t bored out of my mind. But I’m not just talking about the story here, I am also talking of Aaronofsky’s directing, which matured and evolved for the best (thank God for that!). He beautifully shoots the various infernal downward spirals of the various forms of addiction, he shows the parallel between them visually (when they all adopt a fetal position, for example) and with music, which is beautiful and haunting (sorry for using such a cliche, but it’s the only word that really fits).

Then there’s the acting. I am not a Jared Letto fan, but what happens to him still makes me cringe (in a way, because I dislike him so much, I kind of enjoy watching him suffer. But that’s just me). And there’s his mother’s addiction to diet pills, which is horrifyingly great to watch. You’ll never look at a fridge the same way.

One thing’s for sure If they showed that movie in high schools, the drug business would be in serious trouble. But who cares about that? It’s a disturbing movie and that’s all that matters! Go get it, rent it, watch it, like it and then buy it and show it to your friends and take bets on who’s gonna leave the room first, either offended or disturbed. Or here’s a fun game: everybody downs a shot of something every time someone takes a pill or shoots up.

Counter Point – From Jonny

Requiem For A Dream is not a good movie. In fact, it is an awful movie. Kamdine has obviously gone retarded, or someone is paying him to give such a glowing review. Often times here at Ruthless, we include funny little ratings like, “Number of times oppressive soundtrack made you reach for your knife.” I thought that category up while watching Requiem For A Dream. Another way to describe the soundtrack is, “four notes, one hundred and twenty minutes.”

Soundtrack aside, lets talk about what an absolute pile of dung Requiem For A Dream is as a film. Here is the basic plot if you missed it:

Drugs are bad. Drugs are really bad. Drugs are so bad in fact, that if
you do them you will get a dildo up your ass, your arm will fall off
and you will get attacked by a large appliance. That is how bad drugs
are. Drugs are never fun, not for one second. All drugs do is make you
unhappy. Every second of everyday.

I’m pretty sure Ed Meese and Nancy Reagan were the executive producers. A whole bunch of you ass-munchers out there are going to flood my inbox with emails like, “Nuh uh! My friend Larry died from heroin. It was just like Requiem. You don’t know what you’re talking about.” To you I answer in advance, ”Your friend Larry was a weak minded fool who couldn’t handle his shit. Drugs are for smart people. Like anything, when stupid people get into them, it wrecks it for everybody else.”

Yeah, Jennifer Connelly doing the lesbian-anal-dildo thing was pretty hot. Yeah, there was one scene where Jared Leto and Ellen Burstyn are sitting at her table and they have a nice mother/son talk that I thought was interesting and well acted. Other than those two things, the only positive thing I can say about this movie is that I now know how to spell the word “requiem” [Ed Note – In his dreams].

What I suggest, rather than doing Kamdine’s drinking game, is to get a hold of a bunch of white drugs and pills (any color) and do a line every time someone pops a pill or shoots up. Take a pill whenever you realize that Jared Leto is a no-talent hack. Remember kids, just because you star in an after school special shot to look like a Gap ad, doesn’t mean you have depth.

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About Jonny Lieberman

Jonny was the site’s co-founder and helped carry the place in the early years. There was a falling out with Erich and he left the site for good, but a lot of his reviews live on. He has moved on to a successful career writing about cars. Look him up.